The Gong gig did not last long for Holdsworth: In 1977 I joined Gong which was a potentially interesting writing situation, but they could never stop arguing long enough to organize anything.

Weve got one or two tricks up our sleeve that I reckon are pretty much us combinations of sounds and things like that.

But it will probably take us two or three albums to get there.

He got a few things right.

U.K. indeed had as unique a sound as they come, and definitely pulled more than a couple of tricks on their debut album.

That lineup was not destined to release another album and in fact ceased to exist only 6 months after that interview.

This is the story of the short-lived original lineup of U.K., one of the best progressive rock and fusion ensembles to emerge in the 1970s.

Immediately after releasing the album Red at the end of 1974 the band called it quits for the rest of the decade.

Drummer Bill Bruford and bass player and singer John Wetton were not planning on this abrupt end to a successful run of albums and tours.

Robert Fripps announcement that the band was no more forced the two musicians to look for other outlets.

John Wetton found a position as a bass player for Roxy music on their tour to promote their album Country Life, with Eddie Jobson on violin and keyboards.

Although limited to the role of a bass player, Wetton had a great time on that tour: I first did the European tour with them, then the American and later the Australian and Japanese.

I had the fun of my life and it was the only time where I got womens underwear thrown at me Tracks recorded during that tour are included in Roxy Musics live album Viva If There Is Something is a fine example of Wetton and Jobson on the same stage three years before forming U.K., with Jobson playing a great violin solo.

Meanwhile, after three years with Roxy Music, the band went on hiatus and Eddie Jobson was quickly recruited to Frank Zappas band.

Between 1976 and 1977 he participated on a number of Zappa albums, including Zappa in New York and Shut Up n Play Yer Guitar.

Jobson tells this story of his audition with Zappa: Frank flew me to Canada, and I went around with him on tour in Canada after the Roxy tour.

I was just like traveling around with him, but he wanted me to play on the stage.

I was completely unprepared and had no idea of what was going on the stage.

He played Black Napkins, which he wrote on this tour, and that was my audition in front of 10,000 people.

He pointed at me, and I had to do a solo over Black Napkins.

For the detailed story of that musical journey read this article.

In an interview he said of that period: I suppose it seems like a long empty period for me but that solo album took a lot of hard graft on my part.

It was a deliberate effort on my part to try and make it as a musician us drummers have this inferiority complex.

The album included Dave Stewart of National Health on keyboards and a young Jeff Berlin on bass.

Looking for a guitarist, Bruford recalled hearing guitar wiz Allan Holdsworth on the Gong album Gazeuse, or Expresso in the US release.

Roxy Music Discography Torrent 320 Main